foot or toe rolling, anyone?

[starrynight]

E has been in OT for her sensory integration for awhile, she didn't take her first steps until she was 20 months and didn't actually walk on a regular basis until 21 months. At about 15-16 months I noticed her feet start to turn in a bit when she would pull up to stand or walk with the push walker. Ped said it was developmental and normal. Ok yeah I do agree with this in most cases.

But now that she is actually walking and running and putting weight on the foot you can see her left toe and foot rolls in and from the knee down her entire bone/leg seems twisted. I had her OT look at it and watch her walk and she saw it too and seems much more concerned than the ped. We have't gone to the ped since she was 18 months and she wasn't walking at the time, we are due to go back in a few weeks for her 2 year and I will bring it up.

anyone go through this? Was it anything? If it matters any that leg always looked "off" to me. When she very first started to crawl she used to drag it while she used her right leg to crawl with and propel herself forward. At about 6-7 months she started to use it fine and stopped dragging it so the ped thought it was just a glitch and was nothing. Thanks.

[brittone2]

I'll give you the generic answer...there's no way to know without seeing it in person :( It could be within the range of normal, it could be something that should be treated. I'd pursue it further if you are concerned. Does the OT think ithis might related to her sensory issues? Is it both feet/legs but just worse on the left?

I will say that while I give most pediatricians a lot of credit for having to have such a broad knowledge base, they aren't always the best at picking up things like torticollis, plagiocephaly, or other biomechanical/orthopedic type issues in my experience unless they are very obvious cases. I've seen many a parent have their concerns brushed off when something really was going on. And depending on the problem, the amount of time wasted can mean the child ends up needing more therapy than they would have otherwise.

If the ped appt. is very soon, maybe wait until then. But, even if he brushes you off, if you still feel something is going on, you might want to pursue it further. It may or may not be something that needs treatment but I'd look into it further.

Can the OT request a PT consult/eval for you through EI? THat's how we would have handled it back in PA. If they don't think there's a cause for concern, that's wonderful, but it would be good to have someone with a little more orthopedic/musculoskeletal type background take a lookie IMHO.

Let me know if I can help more :)

[starrynight]

Thanks Beth. They will do a PT consult but they prefer in this state to get a "script" for it first from the ped since my insurance covers my portion of the copay to ECI.

It is both feet but barely noticed on the right, I am the only one that saw it. The left it is very obvious, not only the leg turning but the toe rolling. The OT thinks it's a bone problem, not sensory. I have no problem fighting the ped for the script or for the very least a referal to an ortho and possibly xrays. I was just curious if this happened to anyone else's kiddo.

My son had the typical toddler foot turning but his toes never rolled and it was just totally different then Eliza and he walked much earlier at 12 months.

[daisymommy]

Many of my family members have this apparently genetic problem, including my brother and I, and my father. I have been to physical therapy for it, and wear tennis shoes specially designed for feet that roll inward (I'm drawing a mental blank on the term for this, but it's the opposite of pronation...inversion maybe?). I bought them from a running store and it has made a huge difference in how I walk, but also how my feet feel. My feet hurt very bad when I walk around alot and I'm wearing any shoe without very good arch support in them (which helps offset the turning in of my feet and legs).

I know that your child may not have this problem as a result of genetics, but it still sounds the same as what we have. My PT told me our problem was a result of weak knee muscles, which then in turn weaken our calf and ankle muscles. The muscles which hold our legs in a straight line when we stand or walk are weak and underdeveloped, so my knees, ankles, and arches turn in both when I stand and walk.

Since your child walked later than normal, it soujds very likely to me that her muscles are weaker than average because of this delay in the amount of excercise they got.

It can be quite painful at times. The worst is when I have alot of weight on my legs (pregnancy, carrying heavy items, etc.). So, as my PT she worked alot on lower leg and knee strengthening excersises and it made a huge difference in how I felt and walked. Unfortunately, after my sessions were over, I slacked off and didn't do the excersises on my own anymore, so things wen't back to the way they were. This is further proof in my case how much the PT worked.

I'd ask your PT about it!